


Wanderings

by DoanTrang



Series: Inquisitorial Enigma [1]
Category: Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Bears, Drabble Collection, Inaccuracies, Slight Canon Divergence, too many of them
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-18
Updated: 2017-07-18
Packaged: 2018-12-02 00:52:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 881
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11498343
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DoanTrang/pseuds/DoanTrang
Summary: Lavellan gets the party hopelessly lost while side-questing. They find entirely too many bears but all's well that ends well right?





	Wanderings

**Author's Note:**

> I have no sense of direction either in-game or in real life. It's called taking the scenic route...

     When Scout Harding had filled Aegis in on the Hinterlands and Horse-master Dennet, she probably hadn't expected him to get so lost that it would take a good week longer than necessary to secure horses for the Inquisition. The journey had started off well enough. Varric was irritating Cassandra and Solas was, as usual, above it all. When they had left Corporal Vale with explicit directions and a clear map, it all seemed like plain sailing. Then the quests started.

     As Aegis was chatting to the fifth person they met while wandering the village, Varric was beginning to wonder if all the Elvhen folk were as curious or if it was just their Herald. He was also wondering if the Herald was lost. He seemed to be wandering with no great purpose and certainly not in the direction of the village gates. Cassandra was making a valiant effort not to implode with impatience and Varric decided to pitch in and help her. Naturally, he only managed to piss her off more.

"So Seeker, think our new friend here is a bit...directionally challenged?"

Cassandra's glare wouldn't have looked out of place on an irate dragon. She had begun to respect the Herald or at least see him as vital. Thus Varric's jibe was unwelcome.

"He is compassionate, that is all." Cassandra sniffed.

 "Oh sure, I mean who wouldn't take pity on some poor guy's druffalo?"

Cassandra didn't reply  and Varric shrugged, content to see her seething internally. It was Solas who finally gave in and approached Aegis. The two had already become somthing akin to friends, possibly aided by their shared heritage. While Solas claimed not to like the Dalish much, he couldn't help but be fond of the young elf. 

"Da'len, I do believe that the druffalo wandered in the direction that Redcliffe farms lies in. We can find our horse-master along the way." 

Aegis straightened from where he had been crouching and listening to a child describe their lost teddy bear. The bear lay within sight, beside some abandoned crates. Cassandra was trying to get to it quietly because Maker knew if the Herald saw the crates he'd loot them and probably find a stray letter they would spend hours trying to deliver. She shuddered, they had already done two such deliveries and if she had to do one more she might tie the man up and drag him to Dennet.

     Eventually they made it out into the Hinterland plains. For a while they headed the right direction but before long, Aegis recalled the man who had told them of the starving refugees and set off after some rams. Rams don't care much what direction they go as long as it is away from predators. Unfortunately that meant the group had to zig zag across the countryside after them until they collected enough meat. Then, instead of correcting their course, Aegis remembered he had also promised to find blankets. By the time they had found enough caches, Cassandra was fuming, Varric was staying well away from her and Solas had given up trying to steer the other elf. 

     Aegis was now rifling through an abandoned journal and Cassandra prayed fervently that it didn't contain some cracked last request. He had insisted in burying the owner, who's skeleton had been nearby so that meant spending longer than necessary in the area. This in itself was not a problem other than the fact that time was wasted no, the problem was that it was bear territory.

     The first took them by surprise, the second was dispatched more rapidly while they rode the high of adrenaline and by the third they started to tire. If not for Cassandra's sheer fury, they might have been in trouble. Since she couldn't blow up at the Herald, she took it out on the bears. When the last one fell she shook the blood off her blade and the other's sheathed their weapons. Varric collected the undamaged arrows and handed Aegis the green-tipped ones. Or he would have had the guy not been busy scavenging bear hide. A growl sounded behind him and he felt Solas and Varric inch away. Then a sharp pain indicated that Cassandra had gripped his ear and hauled him to his feet.

"Enough! Enough. We go to Dennet." She marched off still holding the unfortunate elf.

As she calmed, down she released her hold and all went smoothly for about two hours, Aegis feeling suitably chastised. Then the mark started to act up. Then they had to seal the rift. Then they had to seek out all the rifts in the region. And then of course, they had to flee errant bears who thought them weak pickings. Exhausted as they were and without any healing potions, rational thought went AWOL and they managed to wander into uncharted territory. The map, and probably Aegis too, were saved from violence by Solas' soothing words and Cassandra contented herself to tie him to a tree while she asked for directions. They had learned not to let the Herald ask since that just got then more requests.

     All in all by the the time they found the Horse-master, they were a good deal fitter, experts at bear hunting and pretty popular throughout the Hinterlands' villagers.


End file.
